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During the course of your High School/High Tech journey, you will
encounter students with diverse physical and mental impairments, and you
probably will interact with students, parents, employers, and others who
represent many different cultural backgrounds. This section provides an
overview of some important concepts related to disability and cultural
awareness. These points are also intended to help you guide community members
in building their comfort levels as they interact with youth who have
disabilities and come from diverse cultural and ethnic backgrounds
High School/High Tech is a program of
opportunity—opportunity for students with physical and mental
impairments to explore career options, gain employment skills, and pursue
further education leading to high tech careers. Therefore, project staff
members are encouraged to reach out to all students with disabilities,
regardless of type of disability, race, or ethnicity. Working with people who
are different from ourselves requires an awareness of and sensitivity to
varying perspectives. This section is designed to increase your level of
disability and cultural awareness.
Many of us grew up during a time when people with disabilities
were relegated to special classrooms, and, as children, we were told not to
stare at or ask questions of people in wheelchairs, people using sign language,
or people who were mentally retarded. Since then, laws have been passed to
ensure the rights of people with disabilities, and society overall has become
more accommodating and accepting of those who are "different." Americans with
disabilities are now in the mainstream—living independently, working,
playing, going to school, voting, shopping, and otherwise participating in the
same activities as everyone else.
Your High School/High Tech project will involve you directly in
the education and lives of students with many different kinds of physical and
mental impairments, some very visible and others unseen. One of your goals is
to support the students in every way you can, so it is important that you feel
comfortable with them—and they with you. The following tips are provided
to increase your confidence, understanding, and skill in interacting with
people with disabilities. These tips also can be shared with employers, local
advisory committee members, and others involved in your project.
- Remember, no manual can prescribe exactly how to respond or
behave in every situation. Just as able-bodied people have differing
preferences, habits, moods, and opinions, so do people with disabilities.
- Focus on the situation or task at hand, and the student's
abilities and strengths, rather than the disability.
- Don't define the student by his/her disability. Each person is
the sum of his or her parts, which may include a physical or mental impairment,
as well as a unique personality, aspirations, goals, learning style, tastes,
interests, hobbies, and family situation.
- Avoid using labels such as "wheelchair-bound," "sufferer," and
"afflicted" that evoke helplessness or pity.
- Also avoid using terms such as "the blind" and "the disabled"
that categorize and focus on the label rather than the person. Phrases such as
"wheelchair user," "person with a disability," and "student who is blind" are
more appropriate.
- In conversation, speak directly with the person with the
disability, rather than with a person who may be accompanying him or her.
Maintain eye contact with the person with whom you are speaking, even if he or
she is using a sign language interpreter. Also remember that, in most
situations, there usually is no reason to speak unusually slowly or loudly.
- Offer assistance only when it appears that assistance may be
needed. Be sure to wait for the person's response and then proceed according to
the response. If you are unsure, ask what is the best way to assist. Remember
that everyone is different! Some people will gladly accept a helping hand,
while others may feel that the assistance is intrusive or patronizing.
- Don't lean on, touch, or move a person's equipment without
asking his or her permission. This includes wheelchairs!
- Ask for the person's advice about how to make effective
accommodations for him/her.
- When the person's disability is relevant in a particular
situation and you need to know more about his or her needs, do so sensitively.
Explain why you are asking for the information and how the information will
help in the situation.
- If you are curious about the use of a certain assistive device
or piece of equipment, just ask. The user most likely will be happy to tell you
about it.
- Relax and behave as you would with others in a similar
situation.
- Learn as much as you can about specific conditions that cause
disabilities, but remember that each person's situation is unique.
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What kinds of disabilities do High School/High Tech
students have?
Students participating in High School/High Tech may
have many different kinds of physical or mental disabilities, such as:
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- Attention deficit disorder
- Autism Hearing impairments
- Emotional impairments
- Learning disabilities
- Mild mental retardation
- Orthopedic or neurological conditions
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- Speech or language impairments
- Spina Bifida
- Traumatic Brain Injury
- Visual impairments
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The Cultural Diversity High School/High Tech Initiative is
supported by the National Office of High School/High Tech and seeks to improve
employment opportunities for minority persons with disabilities who are
disproportionately represented among the unemployed. The project works with
minority organizations to develop strategies they can pursue to reduce the high
unemployment rate of minorities with disabilities.
Under the Cultural Diversity Initiative, four High School/High
Tech project sites have been initiated with the NAACP, the Urban League,
ASPIRA, and La Raza. These partnerships are designed to serve the minority
youth that each organization represents, as well as to offer each
organization's branches or affiliates a local program model for further
replication across the country. Each organization has agreed to promote stories
about their project as one way to further educate their counterparts about
employment issues and strategies associated with increasing employment
opportunities for persons with disabilities from culturally diverse
backgrounds.
In our daily lives most of us encounter people from other
nations, cultures, races, and ethnic backgrounds. Likewise, many school systems
and workplaces are faced with challenges—and opportunities—that
result directly from the integration of people from many different backgrounds
and perspectives. Your High School/High Tech project no doubt will mirror the
cultural diversity found in your community. Below are a few tips for working
with students, parents, employers, and others from different cultures.
- Avoid scheduling activities and events on religious holidays,
other holidays, and days or times of worship observed by students and their
families. As you get to know the students, find out if there may be scheduling
conflicts.
- Consider translating forms, flyers, meeting materials, and
other printed materials into languages that are easily read by parents and
students.
- Arrange for language interpreters to facilitate communication
with students and their families.
- Arrange for alternate menu choices, such as vegetarian entrees,
when planning events that involve meals.
- Be specific about what you mean by "on time." Cultures vary in
their interpretations of what is meant by being on time, early, and late.
- Attune yourself to the manners and customs of students'
cultures so that you better understand their needs and perspectives.
- Recognize that cultural values and mores may influence
students' behavior at school and in the workplace, as well as parents'
interactions with you or others who are involved in your project.
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Did you know that…
Cultural differences
manifest themselves, often subtly, in many everyday activities. Greetings,
signs of respect, conversational styles, dress codes, food choices, table
manners, attitudes about school and work, and religious practices vary widely
across cultures. For example:
- In some cultures, avoidance of eye contact is a sign of
respect, not an indication of discomfort, interpersonal avoidance, or lack of
interest.
- An apparent lack of assertiveness might also be a sign of
respect, rather than shyness, ambivalence, or disinterest.
- The meanings of gestures are not universal. People from
some parts of the world may interpret typical American gestures, such as
pointing an index finger or giving a "thumbs up," as rude or even obscene.
- When meeting or greeting one another, people from some
cultures shun body contact, particularly with the opposite sex. People from
other cultures expect to be kissed or hugged by people of the same or the
opposite sex.
- Many cultures consider students' academic achievement to
be paramount and do not concern themselves with students' social development.
- Expressions of praise and criticism are interpreted
differently by different cultures.
- Food choices, preferences, tolerances, and taboos vary
widely across cultures.
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